Easy Tamarind “Rice” (Puliyogare with Quinoa)​

This is the quick and easy way to get delicious tamarind rice, or as we call it in South India, Puliyogare. Did you know that tamarind is a natural preservative and has shown to inhibit certain bacterial growth in foods*. In the west one adds vinegar and citrus juices to food to liven it up, Indian’s love to also use tamarind juice to liven food up and for its delicious tangy flavor. Puliyogare was a dish my mom made all the time and especially when we would go on long road trips from one city to another. It was a quick dish that could be easily made when you have the pressure of packing your family’s bags and supplies for a long road trip. You could certainly make homemade Puliyogare Powder fresh and have it on hand, but when you are really in a pinch I find that MTR Puliyogare Powder gets it done for me. Today, this is what I focus on for the recipe. We use store bought seasoning to flavor the rice, however if you are a pro and have access to your homemade Puliyogare Powder, use that instead.

Most Indians will notice my use of quinoa in this post’s featured image is unorthodox. I use Quinoa to minimize the carbohydrate intake of our family meals. This article has a great head to head comparison of brown rice vs. quinoa, but the detail in the article that is most important to me is that “Quinoa has 39 grams of carbs in a cup while brown rice weighs in with 45 grams.” Quinoa does have a decent amount of carbs, so it is still important to eat the right amount of it recommended by your diet. I like using this Quinoa as my rice substitutes. A good alternative to Quinoa for low carb diets would be Cauliflower Rice. I like to pair this dish with a vegetable side dish and some hard boiled eggs.

Easy Tamarind

diviThis is the quick and easy way to get delicious tamarind rice, or as we call it in South India, Puliyogare. Did you know that tamarind is a natural preservative… Print This

Serves: 6 Prep Time: 5 Minutes Cooking Time: 20 Minutes20 Minutes

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

Ingredients

4 Tbsp Canola Oil (45g)

1 Stick of Curry Leaves (1g)

3 Dried Red Chillies (2g)

Handful of Peanuts (38g)

4 Tbsp MTR Puliyogare Powder (80g)

2 Tsp Sugar or Artificial Sweetener

2 Cups of Uncooked Rice or Quinoa (295g)

Lemon Juice to Taste

Salt to Taste

​

Instructions

Cook rice or quinoa on a pot with 4 cups of water. I prefer using day old rice or quinoa for this dish. If you need to make t right away I would make it, lay it out on a plate, and put it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Heat Canola Oil in a large skillet on medium high heat.

Add curry leaves and peanuts and toast for a few seconds.

Add Puliyogare powder to the skillet and sauté for a few seconds.

Add rice or quinoa and sugar or artificial sweetener toss and mix well.